A survey and environmental scan, circulated to learners, trainees, staff, and faculty members has shed light on the equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) climate in the University of Ottawa’s Faculty of Medicine. Respondents opened up about the key EDI challenges and opportunities that they experience, and an action plan is underway to respond to these findings.
Between February and March 2022, the EDI office led a successful six-week initiative, which included the implementation of an EDI Engagement Survey and the AAMC DICE Environmental Scan. The survey was circulated to faculty members, support staff, graduate students, medical students and residents, providing a space for them to share their perspectives and experiences around key EDI topics.
The 12-question survey, developed in collaboration with the PULSE 360 program, evaluated the culture of EDI and gaps in EDI considerations across the Faculty. It focused on 8 core themes: access to opportunity, common purpose, cultural safety, trust, sense of belonging, appreciation of individual attributes, respect, and equitable reward and recognition.
Respondents were asked to rate specific statements related to these themes on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the most positive rating and 1 being the most negative.
Ranking as the top items, the most positive responses related to sharing a common purpose across the Faculty with an overall rating of 4.15/5; followed by feelings of respect (3.86/5); and equitable reward and recognition (3.74/5) and access to opportunity (3.62/5).
Corresponding to the bottom ranked items, respondents identified challenges in relation to a sense of belonging, which received a collective score of 3.20/5; perceptions around trust (3.58/5); cultural safety (3.4/5); and appreciation for individual attributes (3.38/5).
“We need to look closely at our strengths, but even more closely at our weaknesses, particularly when it comes to our residents and our members who identify as LGBTQ+, racialized, non-binary and/or having a disability,” says Dr. Ewurabena Simpson, assistant dean of the EDI office, associate professor in the Department of Pediatrics, and apediatric hematologist/oncologist at CHEO.
The survey was accompanied by an environmental scan based on the Diversity, Inclusion, Culture, and Equity (DICE) Inventory developed by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). The DICE Inventory is intended to support leaders in reviewing institutional policies, practices, procedures, and programs that contribute to an equitable, diverse and inclusive culture and climate for students, trainees, faculty, staff, and administrators. The scan provided further insight into the Faculty’s current status regarding EDI by asking respondents to answer yes or no to the presence of EDI efforts in six key content areas: 1) governance, leadership & mission; 2) institutional planning and policies; 3) communication and engagement; 4) data & assessment; 5) faculty & staff; and 6) students.
According to the results, there are opportunities for improvement in the Faculty’s approach to strategic planning and in its accountability processes when it comes to EDI. Collection of key EDI data across the faculty is an additional area that should be improved. Finally, the results suggest the Faculty could enhance its approach to the recruitment and development of candidates to align with key principles of EDI established in the inventory.
Based on the AAMC DICE assessment, the Faculty has strengths in its application of EDI principles, communications and engagement practices, and student experience and development, and in its governance, leadership and overall mission.
Next steps
The EDI office is already taking action on the results of the survey and environmental scan and has set up five working groups to parse through the data and come up with recommendations for the faculty.
“We take these results very seriously,” says Dr. Simpson, who will be working closely with Dr. Nadine Wiper-Bergeron, co-chair of the EDI Action Plan Working Groups, and Dr. Sharon Whiting, vice-dean of Faculty Affairs, to respond to the results of the survey and environmental scan.
“For our current EDI mandate to be successful, we need the right timing, the right tools and results should be impactful and transformative,” says Dr. Simpson.
The working groups will feed into an overall EDI action plan for the Faculty and establish an evaluation framework to monitor the success of the plan. The groups will address the following topics:
- Data collection and system review
- Equity, diversity and inclusion policies
- Inclusive culture in the academic environment
- Recruitment and recognition
- Research and scholarship in EDI
Visit the webpage of the Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion of the Faculty of Medicine to learn more.
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